By Chris Paul
The Londonderry High School Boys Varsity Soccer team got off to a bit of a sluggish start last week to open their 2022 season.
The team came up one-goal shy in the season opener in Nashua with a 3-2 loss to the Purple Panthers at South High School and went into overtime in their 0-0 tie at the home opener against Portsmouth High School.
In the game against Nashua South, on Aug. 30, the host team got on the board first with 4:15 off the clock.
Lancer senior, Stefan Sandu, responded and tied the game, at 11:10, with his first varsity goal on an assist from senior, Brady Joncas.
South got a go-ahead goal just before halftime.
In the second half, senior, Cristian Levantovski-Correa, knotted the game at two apiece with a header from Connor Koza on an indirect kick at 67:00.
South got the eventual game-winning goal in the 73rd minute of the game.
Londonderry keeper, junior Jason Reilly, had eight saves in the game. The south goalie knocked away four LHS shots on the net.
Head coach, Todd Ellis, was fairly happy with the first game.
“I thought we competed very well at times for a young team against last year’s Division I champions. It was a bummer to give up goals early in the game and late in both halves, but I felt we kept competing. As we gain confidence, and continue to push ourselves through the season, we will be a better team at the end of it,” said Ellis.
Two days later, at home against the Portsmouth Clippers, both teams battled through three periods in the heat and came away with a scoreless tie.
This was a fairly even, aggressive contest with both teams getting six shots on goal, but with little to show for it.
Reilly had a solid game in net to keep his team in the game through three periods.
The team will have two road games this week, the first at Salem High School, on Tuesday, Sept. 6, followed by a game against the Bedford Bulldogs on Thursday, Sept. 8.